Research in Tourism and Hospitality Management
China-New Zealand Research Unit
This research unit provides opportunities for Chinese students to conduct masters or doctoral degree research with some of the top scholars in both New Zealand and China.
Our research expertise
Research in China features highly on our research agenda, and we therefore welcome enquiries from Chinese students who meet the entry requirements for the University of Waikato.
We feel confident in offering supervision and guidance to students seeking to undertake research. Several of our academic staff members meet the New Zealand Government's definition of 'leading researchers'. This allows us to offer PhD supervision to overseas students for doctoral studies at the same fees as domestic students (New Zealand citizens and permanent residents).
Waikato Management School has excellent links with the School of Tourism Management at Beijing International Studies University (BISU), with whom we have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on research.
Past publications with BISU include a book on Tourism in China by Professors Ryan and Gu (Routledge: New York, 2009), and a number of papers on issues relating to the Chinese hotel industry and tourism in China. Associate Professor INSERT NAME HERE lectures at BISU, while Professor Chris Ryan is a Visiting Professor at that university.
For Chinese doctoral students who wish to undertake research in China, this means we can offer possible Chinese supervision, as well as the supervision provided by staff at Waikato Management School.
We also have personal links with staff at Sun Yet San University, Xi抋n International Studies University, Hubei University, Nankai University, Ankang University and Huangshan University.
旅游与酒店管理系
旅游与酒店管理系与北京第二外国语大学旅游管理学院合作密切。双方的谅解备忘录注重研究层面,此前双方合作的出版物包括Ryan教授与谷教授合作编著的关于中国旅游的图书(于2009年由纽约Routledge出版社出版发行)、以及一系列与中国酒店行业和旅游行业论题相关的论文。旅游与酒店管理系的副教授在北京第二外国语大学短期任教,同时Chris Ryan教授也是该大学的客座教授。有鉴于我们双方的密切合作,对于打算攻读博士学位并计划在中国进行相关研究的中国学生,我们有可能安排中方和怀卡托大学管理学院的老师共同指导。此外,旅游管理系的教授和国内各大学的研究人员也有着密切的互动联系,这些大学包括中山大学、西安外国语大学、湖北大学、南开大学、安康学院和黄山大学。
Research assessment exercises
Research assessment exercises
In New Zealand each individual lecturer is assessed on a 700 point basis - 500 points are allocated to research excellence based on a portfolio of 30 publications, with an additional 100 points allocated for 'peer esteem' and a further 100 points for 'contribution to the subject'.
Of all assessed university personnel about 5% are deemed to be Grade 'A' - that is they are graded as being of 'leading international' status, and a further 20% are Grade B, that is of being 'national status'. We have Grade A and B staff, and in the next round we anticipate that 5 of the 8 staff will achieve these grades.
There are also other external assessments such as the Emerald Awards for research papers. Jenny Cave, Tim Lockyer, Asad Mohsin and Chris Ryan have all had such awards.
Where we publish
It is generally agreed that in tourism the leading three academic journals are Annals of Tourism Research, Tourism Management, and Journal of Travel Research. All of our staff have published in these journals, often more than once. In hospitality management the top journals are normally thought to be International Journal of Hospitality Management, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management and the Cornell Quarterly. Our hospitality management staff have all published in these journals. We maintain a list of journals that are ranked in accordance with the Australian Excellent Research exercise (ERA) and are ranked among the world's top 20 universities for numbers of publications in these journals - which for 7 staff means we have one of the higher per capital records of research publication.
Technical competence
We have some of the leading researchers in the field of tourism and hospitality that use both quantitative and qualitative techniques. Both Tim Lockyer and Chris Ryan have had papers published using structural equation modeling, while Tim, Chris, Jenny Cave and Asad Mohsin regularly use techniques like cluster and factor analysis. Alison McIntosh uses various forms of Grid Assessment in evaluating places of historic value.
We also pride ourselves on our qualitative research methods. Immersion in societies in ethnographic approaches to studies have characterised past work by Jenny Cave and Chris Ryan in their work with marginal groups - in Chris's case it took 7 years of research to produce 4 chapters in one book - but the book on sex tourism has made a significant contribution to gender studies in tourism.
Jenny, Chris and Alison have all spent time in research pertaining to indigenous peoples that requires the creation of relationships and trust. Moreover our staff have built up excellent skills in using software to aid in the analysis of textual or conversational data. Jenny Cave, Tim Lockyer and Chris Ryan have all had publications where TextSmart, CatPac and Atlas ti have been used as analytical tools of textual data. Indeed Jenny Cave is our leading exponent of TextSmart.
Not that we are total positivists. Anne Zahra has had work published on research methodologies and the role of the researcher as change agent. More recent work by Jenny and Chris has used Bordieus concept of habitus, as well as strong doses of post-modernistic analyses of de-differentiation and Turners theories of liminality.
International and national links
The expertise of our academics is well recognised by the New Zealand tourism industry and overseas bodies. We work with small and large businesses.
We are a member of PATA. We have status both nationally and internationally.
Tourism Coromandel, Tourism Auckland and Tourism Coromandel have all commissioned research from us, as have the Department of Conservation, the Ministry of Tourism, and the Waihi community.
- At an international level, Charlie Panakera has worked with the EU and AUS-AID projects in the Solomons and elsewhere. He sits on the Advisory Committee for the Minister of Foreign Affairs in New Zealand.
- Chris Ryan is currently undertaking works with Australian National Parks and has advised the APEC Tourism Ministers in 2000 and 2004.
- Jenny Cave is well known in Canadian Museum Services for her past work there.
- Anne Zahra is carving a reputation among regional tourism organisations for her knowledge of archival materials relating to the structures of RTOs.